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Do you remember the days when the only way to receive customer support was to sit on hold for hours waiting to speak to an agent?

How frustrating it was to explain your issue over and over? Thankfully, that is not the only option customers have today. The rise of service desk tools has revolutionized the way organizations provide customer support. This is only part of the reason why choosing the best service desk tool is key to delivering stellar support and boosting productivity company-wide.

The countless options that are laid out on the table for businesses today can quickly overwhelm you when attempting to find the service desk solution that fits your unique needs and budget. This is why it is so important to arm yourself with a strong grasp of your unique requirements and workflows. So, the million-dollar question is: How can you confidently evaluate your options and identify the best service desk tool?

Assessing Your Requirements

Before effectively evaluating any service desk tool, you must take time to identify all must-have features, nice-to-have features, and your budget. Key aspects to consider include:

• The number of users who will need to have access to the tool
• Level of support required
• Integration needs with existing apps and systems
• Customizability and scalability enable future growth

Conducting thorough requirements-gathering sessions with both staff and end-users across business units enables you to compile a comprehensive list of the key capabilities needed to optimize service delivery workflows across your workplace.

Defining Your Ideal Workflow

Don’t get bogged down in the features that a vendor offers in their service desk tool before defining your ideal workflow. Take time to visualize how you want the service desk process to operate end-to-end.

Key aspects to think about include:

• How will employees submit tickets?
• How will tickets get categorized?
• What steps will resolve different request types?
• What automation streamlines repetitive tasks?
• How will solutions get documented for future use?
• How will performance metrics and SLAs be tracked?

While defining your ideal workflow, sketch out the employee and agent experience—outline the critical touch points that make the biggest impact. Taking these steps provides clarity on must-have capabilities before evaluating specific tools. The right solution should align smoothly with your process.

Comparing Capabilities

When demoing different service desk tools, closely pay attention to:

User-Friendliness

• Intuitive, easy-to-navigate interface
• Self-service portal for employees submitting requests
• Knowledge base with FAQs, manuals, and tutorials

Customization

• Ability to tailor fields, views, automation rules, workflows
• Options for white labeling and branding

ITSM Functionality

• Incident, problem, change, release, and asset management
• SLAs and advanced reporting

Integration and APIs

• Pre-built integrations with popular software
• Open API connecting other systems

Pricing

• A clear pricing structure within the budget
• Scales based on users and features

Making Your Choice

With thorough research completed, you can confidently choose the right service desk software meeting business needs. After scheduling demos with your top 2-3 choices, pay attention to:

• Ease of use for end users and admins
• Ability to handle your specific use cases
• Responsiveness and expertise of the sales team

Before deciding, find honest reviews and talk to current customers about implementation experiences. Once chosen, phase in the rollout by onboarding one department at a time. Obtain user feedback during ramp-up identifying any adjustments needed. Also, take advantage of available onboarding resources like training webinars, knowledge bases, and guides.

Let Vision Helpdesk Address Your Customer Service Needs

Choosing a service desk tool proves a complex decision with enormous benefits for your business. Define your needs, assess solutions against those needs, and select a service desk tool empowering agents to provide A+ service. Taking these steps gains you a trusted partner optimizing workflows and enhancing productivity workplace-wide.

For a complete service desk solution, consider Vision Helpdesk. Book a demo with us today to see firsthand how it can streamline support and drive ROI!